Early on July 1st, Matthew rushed to Disney Studios, entered Soundstage 3 where he had auditioned, and, led by a staff member, went into a changing room.
He changed into the training uniform meticulously prepared by the crew, returned to the soundstage, and walked into a separately partitioned training hall.
Perhaps because it was still quite early, there were only a few people in the training hall.
Matthew didn't see any actors he knew.
He walked around the training hall, which was over five hundred square meters.
Unlike the two previous preparation trainings he had attended before filming, this training ground, in addition to the flat wooden floor in the middle, also had some areas decorated with wooden bridges, rocks, and fake boats.
He specifically went over to take a look.
Standing by a narrow wooden bridge, Matthew reached out and touched it, confirming that it wasn't made of wood, but rather the resin material commonly used in Hollywood.
Behind him, an old man with graying hair walked over and said, "This is made of polyethylene, a fantastic material, very tough, and people won't easily get hurt if they bump into it."
Matthew sized him up.
The old man was also wearing a training uniform, and Matthew immediately had a guess.
He quickly introduced himself, "Hello, I'm Matthew Horner, an actor from the crew."
"I know you," the old man said, looking at Matthew.
"I've seen your audition tape with makeup; your swordsmanship is very good."
He suddenly remembered something and quickly introduced himself, "I'm Robert Anderson."
Matthew immediately put on a respectful demeanor and said, "My sword instructor, Patrick Elgala, is your student."
Robert Anderson was a little surprised, "Your elaborate sword fighting was taught by Patrick Elgala? No wonder the moves look so familiar to me."
Matthew humbly said, "I've only learned a little."
At that moment, someone walked into the entrance of the training hall.
Matthew looked and saw Jerry Bruckheimer.
He and Robert Anderson went over to greet him.
After a short while, more actors started to arrive one after another.
These actors had distinct features, peculiar appearances, and were quite a motley crew, making them unforgettable.
They were likely the actors specifically cast by the crew to play the crew members of the Black Pearl.
Then, Oscar-winning actor Geoffrey Rush also arrived.
His character, Captain Barbossa, also had action scenes, so appropriate training was essential.
However, he clearly couldn't connect with young actors like Matthew, and after being introduced by Jerry Bruckheimer, they simply exchanged brief greetings.
Then, a girl with brownish-blonde hair arrived.
From her demeanor, this girl carried an indescribable classical English elegance.
She would also be a main partner in future filming.
After Jerry Bruckheimer introduced them, Matthew also proactively greeted her.
"Hello, Miss Knightley."
Matthew extended his right hand.
Keira Knightley was young but came from a family of actors, and she appeared very well-mannered.
She politely shook his right hand lightly, "Hello, Mr. Horner."
The two would likely be in the same crew for the next few months and had many scenes to rehearse.
Matthew specifically smiled and said, "Call me Matthew."
Keira Knightley nodded gently, "You can call me Keira."
Matthew then chatted with her for a few moments.
Keira Knightley also had a few action scenes in the filming.
She didn't need to undergo sword training; she only needed to come twice a week for appropriate physical coordination training.
It being their first meeting, Matthew didn't say much and quickly ended their conversation.
The most striking impression this young British actress left on him was her appearance.
Due to past experiences, his gaze inadvertently swept over Keira Knightley's chest; it seemed to be less prominent than his own.
This was also an advantage; when acting in European and American period dramas, there was no need for breast binding.
Keira Knightley's face shape was also relatively rare; she had a square face, with her chin slightly protruding forward at the mouth, appearing somewhat prognathic.
Her facial lines had sharp, straight angles, as if carved by a knife, giving her not only a classical but also a heroic and imposing feel.
She wasn't the type of beautiful and sexy actress, but her rather unique appearance left a deep impression at first glance.
Jerry Bruckheimer dared to cast an actress under eighteen as the female lead in such a big production with a budget of 140 million US dollars, so this actress must have her unique qualities.
This uniqueness was definitely not because Keira Knightley did something to please Jerry Bruckheimer; it must have come from her compatibility with the character's setting.
To put it bluntly, even if Keira Knightley were sold a hundred times over, she wouldn't be worth the money Jerry Bruckheimer's film production company invested in her.
In Hollywood, there's a peculiar phenomenon: to portray classical beauties with extraordinary temperament, directors and producers will prioritize young actresses from Britain, while a whole host of American young actresses are primarily chosen to play roles like naive older sisters or L-type characters.
The last person to arrive at the training hall, naturally, was the biggest star in the crew.
The moment Johnny Depp appeared, he drew everyone's attention.
This famous Hollywood eccentric hadn't changed clothes; he was wearing a strangely styled, bright blue suit, with large golden earrings in his ears.
His face looked sleepy, and he wore dark glasses that couldn't conceal the dark circles beneath them.
Even more striking than the dark circles were the gold teeth he revealed.
Even without makeup, Johnny Depp already had three-tenths of Captain Jack Sparrow's charm.
This role of a pirate captain seemed to be tailor-made for him.
It's no wonder Jerry Bruckheimer offered him a salary far exceeding his actual worth; besides Johnny Depp not often taking on purely commercial entertainment films, this was probably also a reason.
However, Johnny Depp clearly wasn't prepared for training today.
After getting acquainted with the cast and crew, he showed no intention of participating in the subsequent training and soon left accompanied by Jerry Bruckheimer.
The others didn't say much, clearly considering Johnny Depp to be part of the privileged class within the crew.
Training then began.
Similar to Johnny Depp, a distinct hierarchy indeed existed within the crew.
Other actors underwent warm-up training under the guidance of Mark Ivy, Robert Anderson's student.
Matthew and Keira Knightley, on the other hand, occupied a very large area of the training hall, receiving individual guidance from Robert Anderson for the most basic warm-up and muscle stretching exercises.
These were very easy for Matthew; he had done a lot of related exercises at Nebula's gym over the past two years.
After warming up, Robert Anderson simply called another assistant to guide Keira Knightley and called Matthew over to the sword rack.
Robert Anderson took two sabers from the sword rack and threw one over.
Matthew caught the prop sword, and his first impression was how light it was—at least two-thirds lighter than the one he used for training.
He touched the blade with his hand; it looked like a steel sword, but was actually lightweight aluminum alloy.
"Let's try some sword moves..."
Robert Anderson, already over seventy, still looked robust.
He assumed an attacking stance, and Matthew, of course, didn't refuse, saying, "Alright."
His right foot was forward, toes pointing outwards, and his left foot was behind, toes pointing inwards, assuming a standard starting stance.
Robert Anderson secretly nodded.
Putting everything else aside, in terms of posture alone, the young actor opposite him was impeccable.
"Watch out!"
He warned, and the saber in his hand lunged forward.
Matthew had been fully concentrated, and his right hand suddenly exerted force, his saber directly colliding with Robert Anderson's sword.
This was the most basic parrying move taught by Patrick Elgala.
Unexpectedly, Robert Anderson took a big step back and directly said, "Stop!"
Matthew was about to attack and quickly stopped, looking at Robert Anderson, "is there a problem with the move?"
"No," Robert Anderson said, constantly shaking his right hand that held the sword, "The move is very standard, but there's one thing..."
He transferred the saber to his left hand and vigorously shook his right hand again, "Matthew, you're using too much force! I'm over seventy, I can't handle such great strength."
Robert Anderson hadn't expected an actor to have such great strength.
He had dealt with many actors in Hollywood, and most of those male stars with impressive muscles were all show and no substance.
This person's strength was probably even greater than that of a professional saber fencer.
Matthew smiled sheepishly, "Sorry, I'm used to sparring with Patrick Elgala."
"My hand is throbbing," Robert Anderson stepped forward and reminded Matthew, "I'm fine, I'm old, but my training in this area hasn't stopped.
If it were someone who hadn't undergone professional training, the sword would surely fly out of their hand."
Matthew nodded, and Robert Anderson continued, "When filming, you'll be fighting against actors, not someone like me.
Be careful to control your strength."
"I understand," Matthew stepped back and resumed his starting stance, "Robert, let's go again."
"Good!"
Robert Anderson transferred the saber to his right hand and lunged at Matthew again.
This time, Matthew deliberately controlled his strength, allowing the sword fight to proceed smoothly.
Though called a sword fight, it was actually all for show.
Their moves were flamboyant and beautiful, but their offensive power was very limited.
Rather than saying they were competing in swordsmanship, it was more about whose moves were cooler and more visually appealing.
After all, they were both using elaborate sword fighting techniques.
In less than a minute, Matthew and Robert Anderson stopped.
Robert Anderson, being older, was already breathing heavily.
"Very good! Very excellent," Robert Anderson said, panting, "We'll skip the basic swordsmanship training step directly."
He thought for a moment and then added, "I need to discuss with Jerry and George about modifying Will Turner's action design."